Quidditch World Cup; Part 3
Hogwarts Castle lay in silence while the students were still absent, since classes had not yet begun, although they were already close to starting. Even so, at that moment, the sepulchral quiet seemed to lull the surroundings of the place into stillness. Only a few isolated sounds drifted in from the Forbidden Forest, where the magical creatures that lived there made their home. Well, lived together was far too gentle a word to describe it.
Within the forest, a constant war raged, invisible to most, unfolding every single day. Dominant species always imposed themselves over the weaker ones, and so it went, in an endless chain of conflict over territory, food, and survival.
Even so, none of those creatures approached the castle. And that was thanks to the existence and involvement of a single man; Rubeus Hagrid, Hogwarts' gamekeeper. An imposing and enormous man, one who would undoubtedly inspire fear in any creature foolish enough to challenge him. However, Hagrid did not keep the creatures at bay through ferocity or power, but rather through the complete opposite.
He was a kind man. He loved all creatures, even the most dangerous ones in the world. To him, they were all harmless beings who merely needed understanding and compassion. Because of that, many of the creatures that lived in the forest kept their distance from the castle, not out of fear, but out of respect.
Well, there was also one more reason.
To be logical, there were also the main instigators of the territorial war inside the forest. Red and his gang, who were quite possibly at that very moment deep within the Forbidden Forest, causing trouble for other creatures. Creatures for whom, honestly, one could only feel pity if they happened to cross paths with that problematic group.
Although Hagrid seemed to notice it, to him it was as if they were simply playing. So he did not pay them much attention, unless some creature ended up injured. And, well, finding injured creatures was difficult. So perhaps nothing too serious was happening. At least, that was what Hagrid believed.
Well, ignorance is bliss.
Meanwhile, Hagrid was calmly carving a unicorn horn. A truly expensive material, yet the half giant seemed to be using it simply to practice his carving. Even so, his face showed a slightly depressed expression.
An elderly voice sounded beside him.
"Hagrid."
The half giant recognized the voice and stood up almost immediately, wearing a happy and respectful smile.
"Headmaster Dumbledore," he said cheerfully, snapping out of his dejected state at once. "It's good to see you after so long. I truly thought I would never see you again after…" Before continuing, Hagrid realized he was about to say something tactless.
"It's all right, Hagrid. And there's no need to call me Headmaster. After all, I no longer hold that position," Dumbledore said with a calm smile.
"No," Hagrid replied at once. "To me, you will always be the Headmaster of Hogwarts. It doesn't matter who comes to replace you; that won't change. You earned that right long ago. I still can't believe they dared to…"
"It's all right, Hagrid," Dumbledore interrupted before he could continue.
"Ah, sorry. It's just that I still can't accept the fact that you were dismissed. How could that even cross their minds? It's Albus Dumbledore, the greatest wizard of all time," Hagrid said with obvious anger.
"Hagrid," Dumbledore said softly, stopping him once again.
"Ah, right. Sorry. I get carried away," Hagrid said as he covered his mouth and gestured for him to continue.
"I came to retrieve the object I asked you to keep. Do you remember?" Dumbledore said, looking at him intently.
Hagrid nodded quickly. "Of course. I still have it safely stored under my bed. I'll bring it right now," he said before almost running into his cabin.
Dumbledore did not have to wait long. Hagrid came out almost immediately with a wooden box in his hands. It was the same box Dumbledore had given him to guard during the time Hogwarts was being rebuilt. Throughout all that time, Hagrid had protected it without fail. Until now.
"I didn't open it at any point, just like you asked, and I kept it well hidden," Hagrid said proudly.
"Thank you, Hagrid. You truly were of great help," Dumbledore replied as he took the box with a smile. However, for a brief moment, when he touched it, his expression shifted slightly, showing a hint of confusion as he stared at it closely. "Are you sure no one touched it, Hagrid?" he asked.
"Very sure. It was even in the exact same place where I left it, without being moved at all," Hagrid replied, nodding.
"I see," Dumbledore said, looking at the box again as he frowned slightly. "Then, thank you, Hagrid. This is all I needed," he said calmly.
"Headmaster, wait. Are you really leaving Hogwarts like this, just like that?" Hagrid asked, his expression genuinely sorrowful.
"Don't worry, Hagrid. It won't be for long. You'll see," Dumbledore replied with a soft, tranquil smile, before turning around and walking away.
Hagrid watched the Headmaster's back, no, the former Headmaster's back, as he left. His expression was slightly sad, yet he fully trusted that he would see him again occupying the position of Headmaster of Hogwarts.
…
Harry walked ahead, followed by Billy and Tommy, who were wearing a rather exaggerated combination of souvenirs. Hats from both teams, gloves from both teams, Omnioculars, small figurines of each player from both national teams, scarves, jackets, and surely many more things stored inside their magical bags.
"You know you don't have to buy the same thing for both of us, right?" Billy said as he examined a figurine of a player called Viktor Krum, which moved slightly. He raised an eyebrow before putting it back into his bag.
"It doesn't matter. I have money; I can afford that luxury," Harry replied calmly, continuing to guide them among the vendors, buying anything that caught his interest for his brothers.
Tommy did not complain. He seemed to be enjoying himself, looking at all the strange things and, in fact, encouraging Harry to keep buying. That caused the objects to continue piling up inside Billy's bag, who did not look particularly thrilled as he watched more and more items arrive.
Harry could be very intelligent and serious at times, very similar to Billy, or at least that was how Billy felt. But at other times, he was exactly like Tommy, letting himself go without thinking too much. Billy found that interesting, to be honest, and also somewhat amusing. Especially considering that Harry was older than both of them, at least in actual age, since technically they were the older brothers.
"Hey," a familiar voice was heard as it approached.
It was Daphne, accompanied by Luna and Astoria, who were waving their arms to get their attention. Although, to be honest, they were drawing everyone's attention around them, so I suppose they achieved their goal.
Especially considering they were three cheerful and pretty girls.
"Oh, you finally showed up," Harry said as he looked at Daphne, while at the same time paying the shop owner with several galleons. The man looked as if he were about to cry with happiness after selling so many things at once. He was even helping pack everything by hand, as if he had completely forgotten that he had magic to do it. The haste in his movements made it clear how happy he was with his customer.
"You know, we saw something interesting," Astoria said with her usual cheerful air.
"Draco and Harry are very popular," Luna added immediately, looking at Harry with those dreamy eyes so characteristic of her and giving him a thumbs up.
Harry made a slightly confused expression at that sudden and completely out of context comment.
"Thanks?" he replied, looking at her. He was already used to how she was, even after growing up as childhood friends. Even so, sometimes he found her hard to understand. Well, to be honest, Aunt Selene and the others had known Pandora for a very long time and still could not understand many of her momentary bouts of madness.
"By the way, we saw Draco and Hermione. They really caused a scene worthy of one of those novels Mom likes," Daphne said mischievously.
"Mmm. If you saw them, where are they now?" Harry asked, not giving it much importance, knowing that Daphne sometimes got carried away with nonsense.
"Maybe on a date," Daphne said, raising her eyebrows, maintaining that obvious mischievous air.
However, she immediately felt a hit on the back of her head.
She turned around at once. There was Draco, standing there with a far from friendly expression, wearing a Bulgarian support glove, the same one he had used to hit her.
"We were behind you the whole time," Draco said with a serious look.
Hermione, who was standing beside Draco, felt her cheeks warm for a moment. However, she quickly regained her composure and, with a serious expression, spoke.
"That's true. I simply ran into Draco when he was having problems with Pansy Parkinson. So don't say things that can be misinterpreted," she said in a slightly authoritative tone.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say," Daphne replied, as if she were no longer interested at all in what they had to say, as if the topic had completely lost her attention.
Everyone gathered together and began walking toward the tents, intending to look for their parents so they could take a family walk, while chatting among themselves.
Billy and Tommy were talking with Luna and Astoria, who managed to make both of them wear confused expressions from time to time. Meanwhile, Daphne walked alongside Hermione, excitedly talking about the most handsome quidditch players.
"Did Pansy Parkinson ask you to get engaged again so you would help her father?" Harry asked Draco, glancing at him.
"Yes. The Carrow family seems to have immediately abandoned everyone who could not be saved, since the evidence against them was irrefutable. The Flints and the Parkinsons, well, to be precise, can barely stay out of prison. They keep losing money on bribes just to save themselves. Before long, they will be a noble family without a single galleon," Draco explained with a faint mocking smile.
"Well, with that, we are supposed to get a couple of fairly quiet years, without idiot terrorists with thoughts just as idiotic as themselves," Harry said calmly, smiling in amusement. "Although that might be giving them too much credit in terms of intelligence if they were to do something like that."
Harry said that while looking around. They were already entering the high class tent area, where people could be seen whispering and watching them from the shadows, trying to go unnoticed, making Harry narrow his eyes for a moment with an amused smile.